Rune Factory: The Monsterious Mirror
by Dark Glass01
Summary: Rebooted. Everybody knows there are two sides to every story: and the monster slain on one side may just be a hero on the other. When Sharance is hit with a bout of mass disappearances, Micah set out to find them only to stumble on an ancient village of monsters, trying to fight against the encroachment of a human village on their last lands in the north. Currently accepted OC's
1. Intro

**Rune Factory: Blood & Memories**

Author Notes: Some time ago, I began to write a story about a wonderful idea I had gotten in my head; a Rune Factory adventure about the monster races and Norad's history through a rivalry between two towns, mediated by everybody's favorite half-monster . However, as my literary mused slipped away and my new, real life swallowed me up, I ended up losing it. I really do want to get back into writing in this fandom though and so would politely request OC offerings to help bring the deep world and history of the Rune Factory world to life. So, what would such a request entail? Well… here is the plot.

 _The nation of Norad is well-known as a place of magic and mystery, where The First Forest clings tight to the mortal realm, her vast wildernesses unexplored, and amnesic farmers with great potential constantly stumbling into isolated villages. However, for the village of Sharance, the disappearance of many of their young women during the night, robbing them of their memories, is far too much for the local hero, Micah to ignore… especially when one of the victims is the woman who saved his life, Sharah. Seeking out across the Kingdom to locate her, he stumbles upon an ancient city, hidden in the bluffs along the northern parts of Norad; a ruin housing a village of monsters! There, finding an amnesic Raven, Micah is sucked into the city of Sal Novo and its troubles, from local drama, to a villain from a nearby castle who seems hell-bent on banishing monsters from their homes and even trying to turn them into humans! Can Micah recover the memories of the Sharance villagers… and perhaps find his complete memories? Can the feud between monster and human be stopped? And, in all of this, could he perhaps find the truth about the greater world outside their little villages?_

So, where do OC's fit into this? Well, Sal Novo, City of Monsters, requires residents if it is to play host to Micah during his adventure and have secrets and events to spring on him (And, perhaps with wife not remembering they're married, somebody to tug at his heart). Below is an application, but I do have a few ground rules.

First and foremost, no Humans! Or, at least, no humans that aren't in a very subservient position and temperament. Sal Novo, as a strong haven for those who hate the Hornless, isn't welcoming of their kind

Give a bit of history and background, to explain why they've gravitated to this town in the first place. Perhaps they were drawn in by family, or developed a deep distrust for humans and sought to fight against them. Or maybe you're a Sech agent trying to work to destabilize the Selphia region as a vanguard for future actions? The sky's the limit.

Please, limit in power level to something befitting an NPC. Some can be fairly powerhouse (Like a town knight/guardian, for instance), but most people aren't going to be too powerful beyond racial abilities.

Please, keep it PG-13

No Gary or Mary Sues, no enemies of all (They'd be kicked out of town), and no dragon anythings.

The following character traits can only be accepted once (for plot reasons): Human-sympathizer, Local human, Loremaster (Librarian/extremely smart person), and political leader.

Application

 **Full Name:**

 **Gender (Physical)**

 **Species (Elf, Univir, Dwarf, Goblin, ect.):**

 **Age:**

 **Birthday:**

 **Physical Appearance (Build, Face, Hair, ect.):**

 **Regular Clothing:**

 **Bathing Suit:**

 **Professional Attire (If relevant):**

 **Items of Note (Weapons, Keepsakes, ect.):**

 **Occupation:**

 **Living Situation (Where do you sleep?):**

 **Place of Work (Name):**

 **Personality (In Paragraph form, if you please):**

 **Talents:**

 **Habits/Mannerisms:**

 **Hobbies:**

 **Fears:**

 **Why are you in Sal Novo?:**

 **Life Dream?:**

 **Feeling toward Humanity (Jealousy? Hate? Superiority?):**

 **Family? (Any local or story-relevant family members):**

 **Personal History (Also in paragraph form, preferably at least two):**

 **Friend-Type (What type of person are you friends with?):**

 **Enemy-Type (What type of person do you somewhat dislike?):**

 **Romantic-Type (What type of person makes your heart flutter?):**

 **Introduction (What are you planning on doing when Micah meets you?)**


	2. Chp I: Into Shadows

**Chp. I: Into Shadows**

 _Hungry_

The beast flew listlessly through the night, its dark form blending with the dark clouds, obscuring only the occasional moonbeam. Every night now, that single word, that desire, gnawed a little deeper in its mind, as it grew even longer since the last time it'd fed. Even then, the last meal had been dreadful; most of it it'd had to puke up, not that far from here… and what was left had long since been digested. There was other prey to be had though, and he was here to take it.

The creature glided a few lazy circles, burning eyes that glittered like stars looking down over their dwellings… sensing the delicious food within. Gently, it descended, the soft crack of a wooden arch muffled beneath its bulk, lids closing tightly over its eyes as the beak opened, a noise like a low howling wind emerging from its depths. It stood there, still as a statue, as it attempted to feed, the little humans still asleep in their beds, lost in whatever their dreams may be… that is, most of them. It dared not look, but from past experience, the air would be filled with ethereal, electric blue spheres, floating gently towards its outstretched, serpentine tongue. It could vainly remember the flavors of the last one… dirty and strong. Hopefully, these would be more… palatable.

And, as it'd hoped, he was soon greeted with a new flavor as the balls drifted onto its tongue, gently rolling down his throat to its stomach. The first were… sweet, warm and wholesome. Like fresh chocolate chip cookies. Then, something sour… as if it had yet to be ripened, who stuck to his taste buds and lazed their way down. A deep bitter, something juicy and savory, round and filling, another so rich it couldn't have stomached anymore, had the next set not been so airy and half-baked. And, with each one, the pangs of hunger grew duller and duller, until they were replaced by a content fullness.

The windy sound died down as it flapped its way back into the sky, careful not to make too much noise. Thankfully, it was able to think clearly again, its horn reflecting a stray shaft of moonlight as it finally got itself into full flight, returning to the long journey ahead of it. It would find its way home…

No matter what.

* * *

"BRO!"

The word echoed through the confines of the Sharance Tree and Micah shot up from his bed, reflexively reaching from his trusty platinum broadsword, half-swinging it before being met with a rather familiar set of pecs. Several questions ran through his mind as he examined the scene; Why was Carlos up this early in the morning? What had happened to his familiar chill, replaced with a look of panic? However, before he could say anything, he was greeted with another figure at his door, Hazel stomping in with a rather peterved look on her face. "Karina!" She shouted, tapping her foot. "You get out here right now!"

"Wait, what's going on?" Micah asked, pushing himself off his bed and letting his sword drop.

"Dude, focus!" Carlos grabbed his attention again with yet another shoulder shake, his other hand balled up with white knuckles. "We've got a huge problem! Carmen's missing! You've gotta help me!" A look of understanding dawned on Micah's face, though he was interrupted once again by Hazel.

"Small world," she acknowledged, growing slightly less tense. "Karina managed to get herself lost to… though I'm more surprised she actually got up for once. You don't suppose they went out together, do you?"

Micah, too polite to point out that they'd indeed woken him up in the morning, and he was still in his pajamas and most certainly not ready to take on any requests yet, gave a short yawn, straightening himself out. "Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be fine." Well… Carmen would. Karina could barely manage a short walk by herself. "Shara might know something… honey," he placed a hand to his side, ready to shake his wife awake… only to hit empty covers, doing a double take and his mouth dropping open, as he saw Shara had disappeared too! "Huh? Ah eh," he chuckled nervously, a bead of sweat forming on the back of his neck. "She probably just got up to water the flowers." She did do that on occasion… though it usually involved waking him up in the process. "Now, if I could just…" he reached into the dresser, pulling off his pajama shirt as he started his daily routine, only to remember right before removing his bottom's Hazel was still standing there. "Can you check the square for me?" He asked, grateful when they finally left and allowed him to change in piece.

He arrived in front of Fantastic Flowers a few minutes later, only to see most of the village was arrayed around it. The garden gate that had decorated the district had been broke into so many splinters; Monica was clinging tightly to her grandfather's shoulders, whose face was deep with worry. Blaise had his hands in the folds of his coat, his face as blank as ever as he conversed with Sherman, who's daughters were flanking him, each looking rather pale as Carlos and Hazel hustled in from the east, Micah's heart dropping when he realized that Shara wasn't with them.

They looked at each other silently for a moment, before nervously running up to Micah. "Sorry bro…" Carlos rubbed the back of his neck, trying to act nonchalant. "But your lady's gone." There was something about the way her phrased it that made Micah's face gloss over, the way it sounded like a joke when it obviously wasn't. The tension was so thick you could cut it with knife, nobody daring to speak above a whisper as more and more of the town funneled in; Rusk bringing in the scent of the fresh bread he'd just taken out, Marjorie wiping the sleep from her eyes as her hyperactive granddaughter looked on with an oddly morbid awe. Micah could only capture bits and pieces of every conversation, trying to glean something, anything.

"… and then she didn't show up for breakfast." Blaise was explaining to Sherman

"Pia!" Shino's voice, then Sakuya 's, rang over the treetops, temporarily drowning out everything else.

"I'm surprised Gaius hasn't woken up yet. " Hazel mused, to nobody in particular

Then, speaking of the devil, the dwarven smith stumbled out of the Blacksmith's door, hammer in his hands as he looked blankly on the crowd, giving an innocent smile. "No Iron?" He seemed to ask, eyes quickly drifting back into a sleepy state.

The general chaos was just too much for Wells to handle, who taking on his leadership mantle, blew a shrill whistle, focusing everybody's attention on him. "Alright." He said, trying to sound as calm and authoritative as possible. "Let's get a village headcount. Everybody in line." He made a liner gesture with his hand, and after a short period of exchanged glances, everybody merged into the line; no real rhyme or reason, but it was quickly done. Shino and Sakuya arrived half a minute later and, seeing the formation and with a quick flick of Wells' wrist, they fell in as well. Their mayor started silently counting in his head, pointing to each of them individually as the villagers kept as still as possible; except Marian and Monica, the former chuckling and then wincing, and the later squeaking and then biting. Eventually, though, he finished… though judging from his brow, he wasn't happy.

"So… Shara, Raven, Collette, Karina, Pia, Carmen, and Daria aren't here." He said, having to pause at the beginning as if bracing himself. "Has anybody seen any of them?" He spoke directly, eyes flittering to either side, though nobody spoke up. A cold hand gripped down on Micah's heart… which caught on fire with a fighting spirit. He swore he'd never lose Shara again… not after last time. It was an insult to him as a person, as a husband, and as a guard. And it was one he wasn't going to take.

"I'll find them." He said, as if stating a fact, drawing the attention of the entire village. His eyes grew sharp, not daring to look up in case everybody's attention would cause him to chicken out. Instead of any argument, though, he got a slap on the back from Shino, a lot more force then you'd expect in her arms.

"Well, Micah to the rescue again, I suppose." She said, staying oddly close to his side.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Wells looked a little concerned, trying to straighten out his back for once. "You do so much already. Maybe we should contact the knights about…"

"No," he said, finally looking up and meeting faces with the remainder of the village. "I'm fine going. After all." He took a stronger pose, drawing his broadsword from the haversack. "How far could they possibly have gone? Just take care of the farm for me, alright?" He directed that comment at Wells, who gave him a solemn nod.

"Well, I won't stop you." He said, stepping to the side to open up a bath between Micah and the village gates. "Just don't get yourself too hurt out there, alright? We're counting on you."

His sack already filled, and riding the waves of the slow clap behind him, Micah, for the first time in awhile, found himself at the town gates, the old hinges creaking as he pushed them open, the path to the coast… and from there, anywhere in Norad he needed to go, beckoned for him.

She'd saved him when he was lost. It was only right he returned the favor.

* * *

Everything hurt.

The sun beat oppressively down on Micah's back , head swimming and body swaying unsteadily as he kept pushing himself forward. All he could really mange was a slow shuffle, the dry, flattened grass cracking as he moved. Everything was a bit hazy, his body having long ago run out of anything to sweat. Yet, despite that, every time he was about to flop over and rest, he spotted a wildflower growing on the roadside, and managed to get in one more step for Shara… two more steps for Shara… ten more steps for Shara.

He could see the tall, earthy grasses growing on either side of the road, which was only distinguished by the fact that the plants there were trampled down. He caught the faint scent of salt… though that could have just been him, his right leg starting to wobble every time he shifted. That was all he'd been seeing for days now, ever since… what had that village been named again? Tram-something. After he'd gotten out of the forests near there, slogged his way over some river, there'd just been these massive fields of grass and flowers. And that couldn't have been less than three days ago.

Now, he swore he was starting to see things. Was that Buffamoo on the horizon watch him? And that rippling on the horizon, that had to be heat wave. Then, it all struck him at once, his legs finally giving out when he tried to taken another step, his body tumbling limply forward as he landed face-first, the grass carpet thankfully cushioning his fall somewhat. He lay there for a brief moment, trying to recapture his breath, before weakly managing to push himself to his knees, arms shaking and eyes barely open. He was so thirsty, so hungry, so hot… so very, very hot. He tilted his head up, vainly hoping for rain, watching a single puffy cloud tease him, refusing to go in front of the sun. It looked so fluffy… like a big, cuddly wooly. He started laughing to himself, trying to reach up to give the wooly a big hug, only to tumble back down and start the whole process over again.

He was about to try to get that playful little thing for the 5th time when ,as he looked up, he spotted somebody else, further down the road. It had fluffy parts too, around its neck and wrists, and was holding out something for him. He crawled forward along the ground, arm out as if to grasp, a weak smile on his lips. Maybe this person could help him! "Water…" he rasped out, trying to make out exactly what this person looked like, but was instead greeted with a flash of light and a loud bang… followed by darkness.

 **Author Notes: A prologue to smooth our way into the story.  
**


End file.
